In most things, I adhere to the principle that free trumps fee. Accordingly, I happily opt to run through my neighborhood, braving variable weather conditions and swarms of families with dogs and strollers, to avoid paying a gym for what I can accomplish for free.

Simply put: Groupon made it cheap and easy. At its core, the Groupon approach engages people through a widely utilized platform (e-mail), presents them a few appealing options (“Deal of the Day” and “Side Deals”), offers an incentive to participate (discounted products and services), and makes participating easy (just click “Buy” to “Get Your Groupon”). Participants try something they wouldn’t have otherwise and retailers have customers they wouldn’t have had otherwise. It’s a win-win.

So, could we apply that model to more consequential activities than trying a new restaurant or body waxing, like increasing personal saving?

Economic security

As the experiencee of the recent recession has shown, having access to a pool of resources is an essential yet often-overlooked feature of economic security. Income alone usually isn’t enough to pay for day-to-day inconveniences, like a car breaking down, or finance aspirations, like moving to a neighborhood with a better school district or helping a child pay for college. Savings provide families the resources to cover life’s expected and unexpected events and improve their circumstances. While these roles are critical, according to researchers at the Urban Institute, almost one-third of all families and over two-thirds of the poorest families couldn’t subsist for three months on their savings at the official poverty line without income.